American trust in elections has deteriorated. A UC San Diego survey of 11,000 US voters found that only 60% believe there will be fair counting of votes in the midterm elections. This is down by 17% from the 2024 Presidential elections, and shows how Americans no longer believe the U.S. elections will be free and fair.
Trust has not just fallen among one specific party, but among all parties at a relatively equal rate. Interestingly, Independents are the least trustworthy of American elections. This could be attributed to the fact that many Independents have grown tired of both parties, but also could be attributed to growing anxiety over how the current administration will handle the midterm elections.
Trump has made increasingly jarring comments and jokes regarding the midterms. In January, he said that “we shouldn’t even have an election” this November (which the White House has said was a joke), and many Republicans have pushed for ICE to be present at voting areas. Many Democrat and Independents have had a visceral reaction to these comments, and if Trump follows through with his comments regarding the midterms, those wary of election interference would be proven correct.
Trump’s election comments may have led to increased distrust from Republicans as well. Trump has repeated the “Big Lie”, claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election that have been widely disproven, and claimed that alleged perpetrators will be prosecuted. 62% of Republicans believe that the 2020 election was stolen, and Trump’s comments only increase American distrust in elections, especially among Republicans.
In 2024, 62% of voters said that they were “concerned” over cheating in the Presidential election. This number has very likely increased, which should worry every American.
In order to regain trust in American elections, Trump and the Republican party should discontinue calls to nationalize voting and deploy ICE agents at voting booths. Nationalizing congressional voting is unconstitutional without an additional amendment, and sending ICE agents to polls will not increase voting integrity, and will only succeed at intimidating those exercising their rights as Americans.